Like this:

I’ve been away from the blog a while because you know, life, but I have not stopped sewing! I’ve been doing some more making things for others (photos of which to come soon) and now I have had quite enough of that thank you. Though I love giving things to people, I don’t like sewing for others. I get crazily perfectionist and stressed, and I don’t feel that I am skilled enough to be doing it yet, but people ask All. The. Time and I find it hard to say no. But aaaanyway, I’m having a break from sewing for others and getting back to being entirely selfish. Hooray! After finishing a woven dress for a friend to wear to a wedding I decided that what I needed to do next was definitely stretchy. I had seen the Green Style Laurel on Pandora Sews and snapped it up!

Pleased as punch

I’m so glad I did, this pattern is HAMAZING. It’s super simple and there are so many variations. I made two back to back, but I fully intend on making lots more. You can have four different sleeve lengths (short, elbow length, three quarter and long) and three different dress lengths (tunic, above knee and below knee). As you can see it looks enturely different according to what fabric you used. For the colour blocked red one I used a thick but gorgeously soft ponte roma from Plush Addict (I’m in love: it’s like being swaddled in marshmallow: they are seriously under selling how lovely this stuff is) and an ottoman rib jersey from Minerva crafts in a wine colour to add some texture and colour contrast. You can’t see the colour contrast so well on the sunny pictures so here is a dodgy camera phone one.

Please ignore the odd fringe

Both fabrics were quite stiff which showed the nice pleats and design lines off well and means the final product looks a bit crisp clean and futuristic. I love it!

The second one I made in a much flimsier jersey I had originally bought to make some monochrome leopardskin leggings with (oh yeah) but it was way too stretchy and thin for that. So, not learning from previous attempts to make dresses and shirts from thin, stretchy jersey, I decided to make a Laurel. It wasn’t too bad as the Laurel is a very easy pattern with few pieces and no complicated stuff. The bodice doesn’t even need elastic to join it to the skirt, just a zig zag stitch, which I did as a triple stitch just to be sure. As I was so in love with my red ponte roma I made a contrast cowl and pockets. I also added a bit onto the length, which I later chopped off as I realised it made the skirt too heavy and it was really dragging the bodice down. I also lengthened the bodice a little so it went further over my boobs. Excellently the pattern already comes with short, regular and long bodice lengths, but as the bodice is empire line, as you can see, this basically means ‘your boobs don’t stick out much’, ‘they stick out a regular amount’, and ‘blimey, they really stick out!’As it can see, it looks quite different in a lighter fabric.

Wahey, red pockets!

It’s sooooo comfy. It’s like wearing a nightie, but it looks smart. I only want to wear these dresses from now on please.

Here is the back.

I like big butts and I cannot lie

So there we go. I think I like this more that the Moneta!! (SHUSH don’t tell anyone) The darts are super flattering and I love the cowl having previously thought I don’t like cowl necks. There are loads of options for customisation: I think it would be great as a tunic, and without the cowl and with a different type of collar. Green Style: your name sounds a bit hippie, and I don’t like the font on your packaging, but I think you have made my favourite pattern yet!

Not a hippie pattern

Oh, can we also take a moment to appreciate my amazing backdrop. I was on a trail round where I live: some artist types have made a little ‘blue plaque’ trail of famous former residents and painted the shutters of closed down shops in homage to the people. Apparently Peter Davidson, formerly known as Doctor Who used to live here. Oh yeah. So bye for now: I’m off in the tardis!